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A very nice tale this. Our chronicler's personality flows through his journal, only rarely having to spreak directly to us (or to the book, which amounts as the same thing). For the most part we have this wonderful monologue.

Very well done!
 
It'll be interesting to see what this power-hungry autobiographer will make of things if, and when, things go awry for the kingdom of France.
 
New king is really bad. I believe that France will be in a turmoil soon. Considering that your alliance with Auvergne was a brilliant move.
 
France needs a new king, and I guess where we can found him, methinks :D
 
I like the I, we, bit at the end. Our hero just can't help himself. Now that he has an alliance, with a little luck and possibly some Plantagenet aid, Jacques could definitely profit and prosper as a result of any internal french strife.
 
stnylan: Thanks! This AAR was originally intended to be a brief interim project but I so enjoy writing about Jacques that its pretty much snowballed.

Kapi: You can be sure that Jacques will not be shy with his views on affairs in France ;)

Olaus Petrus: Hopefully it will turn out to be a sound move. Brittany is still some distance from open rebellion though so for now its more of an insurance measure.

Kurt_Steiner: Well that's one problem that I'll have to figure out how to handle - even if Brittany were to seize the throne it would the de Dreux, not Jacques, that would get all the glory. We'll see how things go...

JimboIX: Its safe to say that our "hero" ( :p ) will do what he can to further the troubles of the de Valois kings.

Edit: Short and irrelevant update today. Still, I hope to work both Jeanne de Dreux and the succession troubles into a fairly important subplot over the course of the AAR.
 
-----​

April 26th, Year of Our Lord 1337

I tire of lagging behind the rest of the Kingdom in obtaining rumours from the royal court. How may I make informed decisions when the knowledge available to me is over a week old? I only learned today, thanks to the writings of an old acquaintance, that King Jean snubbed Humbert le Blount in making Raoul de Brienne the new Duke of Normandy. Such ignorance shames me. Yet the spy master de Pontchâteau had no knowledge of this event! In ordinary circumstances I would assume he was withholding knowledge as part of a ploy to weaken my position within the court. However knowing, as I do, that the boy is very manifestation of incompetence compels me to believe him. His inability to lie is just one of the spy master's many flaws.

May 3rd, Year of Our Lord 1337

No new events of note have reached my ears from the events outside the realm. I will not dwell on the possibility that the King himself has been replaced by the Queen of the Fairies and that I have simply not heard of it. My disposition is too good to be sullied by contemplation on the many flaws of Hélie de Pontchâteau. The snivelling worm is not worth my time and I have more pleasant thoughts to entertain me this good evening.

Despite exchanging correspondence for some months now, today was the first occasion in which I have had the pleasure of meeting the countess of Penthievre. Jeanne de Dreux, the niece of the Duke, has finally graced these cold halls with her presence as she passed south to visit acquaintances in Nice. Alas that she could only spare a mere handful of hours before resuming her journey south. This time was largely spent by her uncle's bedside and I have rarely seen the Duke so animated. It is a pity that she will be unable to attend the Duke's birthday next week.

JeanneDeDreux.jpg

The Fair Jeanne de Dreux

Following this she and I walked through the grounds and discussed the matters of state. Truth be told there was little to discuss in this regard, Brittany being the backwater it is, but the conversation was still most pleasant. I will not attempt to describe the her beauty, a task for which I am frankly unworthy, but will restrain myself to noting how the cold rays of sun complemented her features as we walked through the bustle of the courtyard. Indeed such is her beauty that it could tempt the sun from behind the clouds to welcome her. After four bleak months I had quite forgotten the majesty of Helios' crown.

I admit that I was unhappy to see Jeanne take her leave and continue on her journey. I was tempted to ask her to stay for the evening but that would be overstepping my bounds as a guest myself in this castle. I also received the impression that the countess was eager to take her leave before the arrival of her other uncle. The dispute over the succession of the realm has clearly embittered relations between Marshal Jean and his niece. It is a blessing that the Marshal spent the day in the country on the hunt.

Nonetheless it was a pleasant few hours and I do hope to see the Countess Jeanne again soon.
 
Great update. Jacques was at his most eloquent describing the countess. I wonder who he will favor in the succession dispute. I think he might have a few asof yet unspoken ideas about who would make the ideal partner for the potential duchess as well. We'll see- he would haveto work on his Brittany is a backwater approach to woo her I suspect, if he is so bold.
 
He appears to be fairly smitten. Of course, she does not have much competition out there I am sure, and loneliness might make her seem lovelier than possibly she is in Jacques eyes, but even so he is caught.
 
ComradeOm said:
Three replies within ten minutes of updating? I think I'll turn this AAR into a romantic comedy if this is the level of response I get :D
Romantic tragedy please :)
 
Well, try to keep Edmund Blackadder away from it :rofl:
 
Don't tell me the old blighter actually has feelings, now.
 
Pirate Z said:
Don't tell me the old blighter actually has feelings, now.

I hope not, otherwise I'll be prone to commit suicide by eating one of Baldrick's favourite meals :D
 
JimboIX: Thanks. You can be sure that Jacques is looking for angles to advance his own agenda at every turn.

Olaus Petrus: Well I needed something to take his mind off the weather :)

stnylan & Kapi He's only human after all. As much as I like Jacques' cynicism and bitterness, I want to resist the temptation of simply making him a 2D character.

Kurt_Steiner: Its been a while since I saw series II but didn't Blackadder have a thing for Queenie...? ;)
 
-----​

May 12th, Year of Our Lord 1337

Today was the Duke's birthday. It was every bit as uncomfortable as I had feared. How can one celebrate the life of a man who lies on Death's doorstep? Apparently through prayer. I jest not. We, that is the court and family, stood around the Duke's bed as Bishop de Donges led the room in mass. Throughout this Duke Jean remained prone except for the odd fit of coughing. It was not an enjoyable occasion.

May 29th, Year of Our Lord 1337

I must admit that I do miss the company of the Countess de Dreux. Despite the brief nature of her visit I have learned to cherish any intelligent distractions from the tedium of daily life in this backwater. Even the sun has refused to grace these lands since our meeting. Still, I find our correspondence more enjoyable now that I can picture her face as I write.

It is the good Countess that occupies my thoughts on this most gloomy of evenings. She apparently thinks highly enough of me to seek my advice on a most sensitive issue. Naturally it revolves around the succession of the realm should the current duke pass away. Jeanne has confided in me that she is considering a marriage to a noble from outside the duchy in order to strengthen her own claim and has asked for suitable suggestions. Naturally this places me in a quandary. I am aware that the son of the Count of Blois* is seeking a wife and would be eager to acquire the title of Brittany. But…

Bah. I do not wish to take a position on this issue so soon. A marriage with Blois would immediately bring the issue to a head and challenge the Marshal's current supremacy. How that would affect my own position is something that I must consider. For now I shall say nothing.

June 15th, Year of Our Lord 1337

As one of the few outsiders in this court I welcome the opportunity to converse with fellow souls who come from lands more civilised. That is, lands populated by a people with more intelligence than their livestock. In Nantes the only fellow sufferer is the wife of Marshal Jean. To distinguish her from the multitude of Jeannes that I seemingly encounter, I shall use her maiden name - Jeanne de Dampierre. Jeanne hails from the low lands of Flanders where she is no less than the sister to the Duke of Flanders. After mere moments of conversation it is clear that she harbours hopes that her husband will someday occupy a similar position of prestige and importance.

MarshalWife.jpg

The Marshal's Wife: Jeanne de Dampierre

A woman of not inconsiderable beauty, even if it is sullied by a sharpness of the eyes, the Marshal's wife makes pleasant company in these bleak lands. She has freely admitted that she misses the clamour and sophistication of the Frankish lands and is always quite eager to hear tales of my exploits in Pays de France. In turn I welcome any insight into the convoluted politics of Brittany as well as word from beyond the Duchy.

I mention this today due to an interesting discussion between the two of us that still occupies my thoughts. While not foolish enough to mention my correspondence with the Countess Jeanne, or her thoughts on marriage, I did make discrete inquisitions on the succession crisis. Contrary to my expectations the wife of the Marshal was direct in claiming that her husband would be the next Duke. The alternative, she claimed, was civil war. I had been expecting a purposefully oblique response and was caught by surprise by such a direct statement.

But then the Marshal and his wife can afford to be confident. The Duke is already preparing to meet Death and his wife has neither the will nor the ability to enforce his desire that Jeanne de Dreux succeed him. I can only agree that the scales are tipped too far in favour of the Marshal for even a marriage to an influential noble such as de Blois to address the balance. Furthermore any turmoil can only weaken my own position in both camps.

I shall write to the Countess de Dreux and inform here that regretfully I know of no nobles of note considering marriage at this time.

*Charles of Blois
 
It seems that Jacques has many reasons to prevent the countess from marrying de Blois. :D

Marshall will propably be much better duke than his ailing brother. But stronger duke may mean that Jacques isn't as free to choose his course of diplomacy.
 
Yes, I rather suspect his heart is a little suspect in this whole affair. Not that I am doubting there is good reason why the Marshall's claim is entrenched, just that might be an excuse rather than a reason ;)
 
Dunno why, but I guess that de Blois is going to suffer from a sudden *cough* *cough* death :D